Under Pressure
by Audio Pineapple
Summary: While Jack is away, resting, the Others appear. [Season Two AU.]
1. The magical doctor

**Time-Line Setting: **Sometime in season two, after Collision but before The Hunting Party.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the characters. I am not affiliated in any way, shape or form with anyone who does.

"Jack!" Jack was bolted out of his already restless sleep by the sound of a woman shouting his name. He stood up, his head spinning and bolted in the direction of the sound. He had only just left the caves when a nervous Sun came sprinting towards him. "Jack! It's Jin, he's hurt." Jin followed Sun, holding his arm in his hand and speaking angrily in Korean. Sun replied curtly and then faced Jack, "he's hurt his arm."

Jack walked the few steps towards Jin and took a hold of his left arm. He inspected it for a few seconds before sighing heavily. "It's only a scratch Sun, he'll be fine." He realised that he sounded patronising but he didn't care anymore. He had almost managed to get into a peaceful sleep for the first time in over a week and it had been disturbed for nothing but a scratch. He traipsed back to camp, leaving Sun and Jin to bicker among themselves.

He had just laid his head onto his make-shift pillow when a shadow was cast across his face. He toyed with the idea of pretending that the intruder wasn't there but he eventually forced himself to look up, "yes Kate?"

"Sun says you didn't help Jin when he was injured."

"It's only a scratch. Jin's fine and he knows it, Sun's just paranoid."

"You could have told her that. She was scared Jack." Kate's voice had taken on her high-pitched disapproving tone and Jack knew that he wasn't going to win his argument with logic. He hated to admit defeat but it seemed essential in order to get rid of her.

"You're right Kate. Tell Sun I'm sorry." She left, satisfied with herself, and Jack rolled over, trying to get comfy on the cold floor. He closed his eyes again and tried to block out the sounds around him. It wasn't easy, especially seeing as it was the middle of the afternoon, but he knew that if he waited until evening he was going to collapse.

He assumed that people on the island had the same view that he had of his father when he was a very young child. He was the magical doctor, he could fix you. Because he was magical he didn't need to eat or sleep, if there was one emergency after another he would get up and deal with it without complaint or signs of stress because that is what a doctor did.

And that was what everybody expected of Jack.

It had been a maximum of three minutes before he heard someone saying his name again. He stood up this time, failing to see the point of lying down if it was never going to lead to actual relaxation.

"What?" He snapped the word and Charlie took a step back.

"What the bloody hell was that for? I just came to get my medication!" Jack pointed at a black bag which Charlie hurried to and began searching. "I can't find it," he called and Jack clenched his teeth. "Oi Jack! Did you hear me? I said that I can't find it." Charlie stormed back to Jack and snarled, "are you going to help or what?"

Jack stumbled to the bag, finding it harder than it had ever been to force his legs to move. In about ten seconds he had located the right medication and handed it to Charlie who snatched it and left.

Jack looked around at the castaways, realising that he was in fear that at any second another person was going to come and take up his time. He felt his stomach clench at the idea. He was scared that he had begun to see everyone on the island as a patient, rather than an equal. He shuddered and looked at trees which marked the start of the jungle.

Making his decision, Jack grabbed a few pieces of fruit that lay around, a bottle of water and he went into the jungle.

After walking for half an hour he found himself in a grassy clearing. It was quiet, and secluded and absolutely perfect. He sipped some more of his water and lay down on the ground. As he listened to nothing but the sound of birds calling and trees rustling, he was asleep within seconds.

Back on the beach night had fallen. The survivors had all fallen asleep, none of them were aware of the danger that was slowly creeping towards them.

Silently, carrying flaming torches, the Others were coming.


	2. We need to get them to Jack

**Time-Line Setting: **Sometime in season two, after Collision but before The Hunting Party.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the characters. I am not affiliated in any way, shape or form with anyone who does.

Sawyer moaned angrily in his sleep. He had been happy enough, dreaming about getting off the island, having a million dollar contract for a book deal. _Happy enough_, he thought, _until that stupid mongrel started barking_. He flicked his eyes open and crawled to the flap of his tent. He stumbled outside and found himself face-to-face with a man he didn't recognise. The man was bedraggled, with messed hair and a gaunt face. Still half asleep, Sawyer only managed a "who the hell are you" before he heard Claire's ear-piercing shriek.

It was a loud enough sound to wake the rest of the beach and the man in front of Sawyer ran off. Sawyer stood still, nobody else had moved. Claire screamed again and Sawyer, against his instincts, raced towards her tent.

He was almost there when an older man turned around to face him. Sawyer's mind flashed back to the raft, back to being shot, back to being helpless, carried through the jungle. Sawyer disliked many things, but the worst by far was feeling helpless. It reminded him of all those years ago, hiding under his bed, hearing his mother screaming.

"Son of a bitch!" He yelled, launching himself at Zeek. For an older man he was remarkably strong. He instantly flipped Sawyer over and leant on top of him, punching him around his face. Sawyer felt unaware to almost everything, except for Claire screaming "my baby, they stole my baby." He felt the taste of copper fill his mouth from the blows and struggled to command his flailing arms and kicking legs. They may as well have been made of jelly for the good they were doing him. He closed his eyes to try and block the pain out but suddenly he felt Zeek thrust off him. He opened his eyes again to see Sayid throwing punches against Zeek. It gave Sawyer time to stand up, swaying from the blood loss and the pain but seconds later Sayid was thrown to the ground, hitting it hard.

Sawyer barely registered that Sayid had stopped moving; all he wanted to do was get revenge on those who had shot him. He began to go back to Zeek but he disappeared. Settling for his second choice, he went after the one nearest to him, but was again bested. Sawyer lay on the sand, this time refusing to get up. It wasn't worth it to get even more injured.

He could see people start to pour from the cave onto the beach. Half went to see the injured castaways, the others tried to fight against the Others. He saw one of them circling Locke, only to get knifed in the stomach. It howled in pain and instantly all of them left and ran into the jungle.

There was a moment of eerie silence as everyone froze, unsure whether or not to expect another attack. Then people started to dash around the beach. Sawyer twisted his head back to being straight, and grunted with pain from the exertion. He was listening to Charlie and Kate trying to console a hysterical Claire when he felt a shadow above him. He blinked and saw Locke's concerned face looking him up and down, taking in his injuries. Sawyer opened his mouth to come up with an insult but couldn't be bothered to think of one.

"Kate, over here." Kate's shadow joined Locke's as she stood over him, not moving, just staring at him. "Kate," Locke repeated, "we need to get him to the hatch, the medicine's there."

Sawyer felt them try and pick him up by his arms but lashed out, using up most of his remaining strength, "you ain't taking me nowhere."

"Oh my god." Sawyer saw Locke leave and move a few feet away.

"John? John!" Kate's voice was getting high-pitched and Sawyer chuckled, it was the way she always sounded when she didn't get things to go exactly as she wanted them to.

Sawyer managed to twist his head again and saw Locke crouched over Sayid's body. Locke tried to move his head to rouse him but it was to no avail. He leant his hands against his neck and wrist and Sawyer could hear him heave a sigh of relief. "He's alive," he called to Kate, "but we need to get them to Jack."

Kate scanned the beach, "I can't see him."

"He's got to be here, he wasn't at the caves and he wasn't in the hatch."

"He's not here John."

Locke paused for a minute before stalking back to Sawyer. Looking at Kate, he commanded, "go and get Sun, she might be able to help." Kate sped off and Locke ripped open Sawyer's shirt, taking off his own to clean away the blood that covered Sawyer's chest to see the extent of his injuries. Sawyer shifted uncomfortably before feeling darkness encroach on him. As he closed his eyes to stop the world from spinning, the last thought in his head was that he was once again helpless.


	3. I can go where I want

Jack smiled, walking through the jungle. He'd slept for hours, something he hadn't done since crashing onto the island. A sound wafted towards him through the peacefulness of the bird calls and he began to sprint towards the sound, appearing onto the beach. The first thing that he saw was Claire standing by her tent, howling in pain. He ran over to her, seeing that Charlie was already there, attempting to calm her.

"What happened?"

"Jack, where the bloody hell have you been?"

Jack chose to ignore Charlie's question, there were more pressing matters. "What happened?"

"They…they stole…my…baby!"

Jack nodded, instantly knowing who she meant. The Others, they must have come onto camp, took Aaron. "Are you injured?"

"Of course she's injured! They took Aaron, she's distressed!"

Jack was about to explain the differences between being upset and having a broken leg when he heard someone shouting his name. He turned around just in time to have Kate fling herself at him, wrapping his arms around his stomach. He patted her on the back uncomfortably, he didn't need to be comforting people right now, he needed to be getting on with his job.

"I thought that they'd taken you!"

"I'm okay. I was just…"

He saw Locke storming over to him and pulled back from Kate's grip. Kate straightened herself up, looking embarrassed.

"Where have you been Jack? What's your excuse for not being here?"

It was the last thing Jack wanted to hear, and Locke was certainly the last person he wanted to hear it from. "I don't need an excuse, I can go where I want." He tried to keep his voice calm and rational but he couldn't help the self-protective anger tainting it.

"Sawyer and Sayid are injured and you weren't here to help them."

"They're strong, they'll get over it."

Locke shook his head in disgust, walking away from Jack. Jack breathed a sigh of relief before seeing where Locke was going. He followed him over to Sawyer who was still lying on the sand, barely conscious. His face was swollen and large bruises were already starting to form over his chest. Jack just stared at him for a moment, feeling guilt well up inside of him at not being there sooner. He tried to push the thought to the back of his mind, he had deserved a break and he had just picked the wrong night to take it. He dropped down next to Locke and, leaning over Sawyer he gingerly touched Sawyer's chest, checking for broken ribs. He heard Sawyer groan from the pain, but none of them were broken.

"Hey Doc, you come to join the party?" Sawyer's voice was hoarse as he forced the quip out through a sore neck and injured lips.

Jack turned to Locke, "did you do this to him?" If he had thought for a few more seconds he wouldn't have asked, but it was his natural thought. He didn't trust Locke at all, and he wouldn't put a brutal attack past him.

Locke obviously thought different, his face darkened and his voice took on a tone of seething anger and repulse. "What sort of person do you think I am?" The Others came and took Aaron. Sawyer and Sayid were injured in the process, being heroes."

"Sayid, where is he?" Locke indicated behind them and Jack went to see. Sayid was still unconscious, a large bump on his head. After a quick examination he went back to Locke and Sawyer. "He'll wake up soon, he'll be fine." Jack was beginning to feel uncomfortable with Locke there; he wanted to be able to be able to tend to Sawyer. Although Locke wasn't physically in the way, mentally he was making Jack even more stressed and angry. "Move out of the way."

Locke shook his head, "I'm not going anywhere, and I've actually been useful tonight, unlike you."

Sawyer chuckled beneath them, "oooh, I've got the Doc and the hunter fighting over me, don't I just feel like the prettiest belle of the ball."

Jack continued to stare at Locke, half wishing that Locke would take a swing at him so that he could finally attack him under the guise of retaliating. But he knew that Locke wasn't going to do that, it wasn't his style.

"Move out of the way. I'm the doctor _John_. You're useless."

It worked and Locke stood up, walking away. Jack sighed with relief and busied himself inspecting Sawyer's wounds again. "You're fine, you'll be in pain for a while but nothing's broken." He glanced around to make sure nobody was listening before lowering his voice. "Was it Locke who attacked you?"

"Would that make you feel better Jack? If it had been him?"

"This isn't about making myself feel better, its about not trusting him."

Sawyer chuckled again, shaking his head slightly before wincing from the pain of doing so, "he didn't do anything. He's the one who sprung into action, helping people."

Jack searched Sawyer's eyes, trying to find out if Sawyer was lying.

He found himself interrupted by Charlie encroaching onto him, "Claire's ill."

Jack looked over in the direction of Claire's tent. She had been crying so much that she was starting to choke. Jack stood up, he'd have to go and sort her out before she made herself sick. He went over to her and looked at Kate, who was failing to soothe her.

"Kate, go back with Sawyer and Sayid. If there is any change come and get me."

Kate began to leave but paused, standing in front of Jack and smiling, "I'm pleased you're okay."

Jack nodded, "I'm fine, go see to them. Oh, and don't let Locke anywhere near them." She gave him a questioning glance before leaving. He admitted to himself that it sounded petty and stupid but he wasn't going to let Locke embarrass him in front of everyone.

He turned to Claire and helped her to regain her breathing. Charlie was still hovering nearby, and once Claire had recovered he turned to Jack again. "We've got to get Aaron back, we have to leave right now!"

"It isn't practical at the moment Charlie."

"What do you mean it isn't practical? They have Claire's baby!"

"We'll get Aaron back, but right now people are injured and we don't have any weapons and we don't know where they went." Jack looked around for an excuse to get out of the conversation and saw Sun going past, with something in a bowl. He grabbed her arm to stop her, "Did you get hurt? What've you got?"

"I am fine Jack, and these are some ground up herbs from my garden. We didn't have access to the medication with you gone and Locke said that I should find something to help Sawyer with his pain. If he inhales them then they should help slightly."

Jack let go of her and she continued on her trek towards Sawyer and Kate. Jack felt the anger rise inside him again, Locke had apparently taken over in his absence and that was the last thing Jack wanted. Locke wasn't a doctor, he wasn't medically trained, he was inadequate, and Jack didn't need to keep getting reminded that he had made the right decisions.

"What about Aaron?"

"We'll get him back Charlie. As soon as we can."

"Jack!" Jack heard Locke call his name and spotted him in the tree line and he went over. He was pleased to get away from Charlie and would have been happy if it had been anyone else who wanted to talk to him but it was Locke, so he wasn't happy.

"What the hell do you want _John_?"

Locke looked down to the ground and Jack followed his gaze. There was a woman lying there. Her hair and clothes were tattered, she was shoeless, there was mud over her face and, most notably, she had a deep knife wound in her stomach. Jack went down to her level and checked for a pulse, for breathing. He shook his head, she was dead and she had been abandoned.

**A/N **– Sorry about not updating people, I went off writing for a while and then my internet crashed from half-way through last month until yesterday.

sassafras224 – I do agree with you, hurt Sawyer is far better than dead Sawyer!

speckled girl – I'm not sure if this'll have Sawyer/Kate in. I've never really tried to write romance before so I'll see what happens.


	4. Destined to be alone

Locke stared at the collapsed body in front of him, feeling his stomach clench in remorse. He tried to ignore the feelings; Jack was standing alongside him and Locke wouldn't be surprised if feeling apologetic about murdering a supposed enemy would be enough to make Jack declare him a traitor and hound him out of camp.

Jack crouched down, checking for a non-existent pulse before getting up, "what the hell do you think you were doing John?" The anger wasn't even hidden in Jack's voice and Locke wondered if he had crossed some invisible line by treating Sawyer. A line that would increase Jack's hatred of him to even greater proportions.

"She must have been one of them," Locke started slightly at Kate's voice. He hadn't realised that she had joined them. "Dressed in rags… no shoes… she can't have come from our camp."

Jack nodded and Locke had to hold back a sigh of relief. The situation was diffused for now. He shot a grateful smile at Kate but she didn't notice. None of them ever seemed to notice him when he was being nice, but when he slipped up they were all paying close attention.

Jack hadn't moved from him position on the ground and he reached over, pulling the knife out in a jerked motion. He stood, hand clutched over the entire handle. He held it out towards Locke. "I believe that this is yours."

Locke could tell what he was doing. By covering the handle he was forcing Locke to retrieve his knife via the blade. He did so, feeling the wet blood slide onto his palm. He tried to keep the overwhelming sickness from showing on his face… but the victim couldn't have been older than twenty-three, had her whole life in front of her. He flipped his hold on the knife, holding it by the handle but he could still feel the blood.

Jack smiled at him, a condescending one that was designed to make Locke feel inadequate. He didn't' react, allowing Jack to believe that he had one. Jack's eyes lit up and he smirked, "I have to get back to Claire."

Jack left and Kate traipsed along after him, leaving Locke behind. He surveryed the beach, some people were still wandering around, panicked, not sure if the Others would return. He began to make his way over to his bag to put his knife back into its rightful place but his eyes focused on Sayid's body beginning to move and he went over to him.

When he reached Sayid he winced. The bump on his head was large and he felt a pang of guilt looking at him, remembering how he had attacked him so he could destroy his equipment. Sayid's eyes fluttered open and he saw Locke crouched above him, chest bare, with a blood-soaked knife still in his hand.

"What happened to you?" Sayid's voice was tired and his eyes seemed to have trouble focusing. Locke considered going to get Jack but he was busy with Claire who seemed to be having trouble breathing. He was sure that Jack would just shout at him more if he tried to be helpful. He had been called useless the last time he had attempted to tend to Sawyer and Sayid and the word stung at him. Despite the fact that all he had found in his beloved hatch was a scared man and a button, Locke was still sure that he had a higher purpose that he was to fulfil; something that would mean he was useful.

"Try to lie still, you got knocked unconscious." He remembered that he was holding a knife and realised that the fact must have looked daunting to Sayid. "I was getting attacked by one of the Others; I fought back and killed her."

"Oh," Sayid didn't sound phased and Locke was confused, before he remembered that Sayid was a trained soldier. He'd have been in life or death situations before and he would know that fatalities were inevitable. Locke considered the future, whether he should ask Sayid for support but he knew that he wouldn't be comfortable doing so. Despite wanting to befriend the castaways he had found himself beginning to accept more and more that he was destined to be alone. Charlie had ignored him after he had kicked his heroin habit and Boone had died… nobody else even talked to him.

"Did anybody else die?"

"No, but they took Aaron." Sayid began to struggle to get up and Locke gingerly put a hand onto his shoulder to push him back down. "You can't get up, you're not well enough."

"I can not lie here whilst a child is missing."

"Jack's organising the rescue attempt," Locke didn't know if Jack was organising the rescue attempt but he assumed that he was; it was the sort of thing that Jack secretly thrived on. He acted as though he hated being the leader but it gave him a purpose, something to focus on so that he did not collapse entirely. Locke envied him, but he knew that he would not have been able to be the leader; he was on a personal journey, not a group one.

The guess seemed to placate Sayid somewhat and he leaned back down, resting his head gently onto the sand. He looked around and his eyes focused onto Sawyer, who was still lying near him. "How is he?"

"He's doing fine…"

"Hey! You don't get to decide what I am," Sawyer's voice was raw and he was obviously in pain.

Locke was unsure whether he should go to see Sawyer or stay with Sayid, but Sawyer was the one who was the one who was talking and he would be able to hurt him more, even if only via words. Trying to avoid Sayid's eyes he went over to Sawyer.

Sawyer's eyes were fluttering open and closed and he looked like he needed to sleep. Locke didn't dare suggest it though; he just knelt next to him, feeling uncomfortable.

"You gonna say anything?"

Locke couldn't do it, he couldn't think of anything to say and he didn't want to be put in the spotlight anymore, even if that spotlight was only visible by one person. He stood up and walked away, back to his bag and his knives. He put the one he was still holding away and stared at them glumly, that was who he was and he wasn't able to change it.


	5. Why would I be asking Locke?

It had taken a few minutes to calm Claire to an adequate level but she was still distraught, and Charlie was still angrily defending her.

"It's a baby Jack; don't you care that it's a bloody baby?"

"Of course I care Charlie. Look, dawn is in an hour; I'll get a team together and we'll see what we can find…"

"They could be half-way across the island by then!"

"They could be half-way across the island now. An hour won't make much difference."

"Well if you'd actually been here when they took him."

"I know! Don't you think I know that!"

"Oi! Don't shout around Claire! She doesn't need that right now."

Jack wanted to say that, in fact, Charlie had been the one who had begun shouting in the first place but it wouldn't be productive. "I'll go collect people." He walked away, heading across the beach before he had the chance to get even angrier and snapped.

"Are you okay now?" He sat down next to Sayid who had managed to sit up, supporting his head in one of his hands.

"I will be fine."

"You think you can be moving in an hour? We're going after Aaron."

"Of course."

Jack found himself wishing that there were more people on the island like Sayid; ones who would follow orders, or at least ones that didn't become hypochondriacs at the slightest cut or bruise. He got up and was starting to go to Kate, who had left Charlie comforting Claire and had gone to get a water bottle when he heard a voice that made his blood boil even more.

"What? I ain't invited?"

"You're not well enough Sawyer."

"I'm well enough," to illustrate his point he stood up, positioning himself directly in front of Jack, trying to mask the grimace of pain that was contorting his face.

"If I say that you can come will you stop bothering me?"

Sawyer chuckled, an arm wrapped around his stomach, "why? The good doctor a bit annoyed?"

"Leave it, or I won't let you come."

"Fine," he disappeared into his tent and Jack went to see Kate, getting a sympathetic glace from Sayid on route.

"We're going after Aaron at daybreak."

Kate nodded, reaching down to collect another bottle, offering it to Jack. He took it gratefully, trying to distract himself from thinking about Kate. He had reservations about taking her with them but she knew how to track and, as the Others would be far gone by now, her skills would be indispensable.

"You asked Locke yet?"

"Why would I be asking Locke?"

"Because he can track…"

"You can track." He spoke more abruptly than he had meant to but he couldn't help it. He needed to do this without Locke, he didn't want to be controlled by him.

"Barely compared to him."

"I can't have him coming!" He flinched instinctively when she laid a hand on his cheek and looked at her. It was an unexpected show of tenderness and he wondered for a moment if it meant that she cared. She removed it almost as quickly as she had applied it and looked down at the sand.

"How about I ask him?"

He swallowed and nodded, not stopping her from leaving, even though he wanted to grab her arm, pull her back and ask what her hand had meant. Was she just being a friend? Was she finally ready to choose him over Sawyer? He sighed, not sure if he'd ever be able to understand anything she did.

"I'm coming." He was jolted out of his daydream by Charlie's voice.

"No, you're not."

"Yes I am! I've got him back before Jack."

"This is a bit different from Rousseau."

"I can be useful, I know how…"

"Too many people are dangerous. You need to stay here and look after Claire." The softening on Charlie's face told Jack that he had struck a chord. He made his own voice as gentle as possible, "go see her, she needs you now."

Over Charlie's shoulder he could see Kate talking to Locke, a smile spread across the other man's face. Jack felt his stomach clench with anger, he's pay anything to knock that smile away.


	6. Chapter 6

His chest and his stomach hurt the most as he shifted uncomfortably from one leg to the other. He caught Kate staring at him and stopped moving, giving her a sarcastic smile that made her turn away again. They were standing by themselves, waiting for the rest of the rescue party to turn up.

Hearing a heavy sigh he saw Sayid join them, standing beside him, rubbing his temple and groaning. He considered asking what was wrong but stopped himself before the words got out of his mouth. Even if he did ask, Sayid would probably snap at him, and then Kate would laugh and he would be even more alienated. Sawyer didn't mind being alienated, but he preferred it when he was the one alienating himself, rather than other people doing it for him.

"Are you okay?" There, Kate had asked instead, now he didn't need to worry.

"I am fine. I just have a headache."

"You asked Jack about it?" Sayid turned to face him and Sawyer instantly wished he hadn't asked; now he would be retaliated against. His mind began to work quickly, forming comebacks to every attack he could think of. He was shocked by the answer he received.

"No."

That was it, a simple no. It hadn't been said with malice or with a smirk, it was just an answer, the same he would have given to anyone. It was questioning though, as though he didn't understand why he would have seen Jack. Sawyer decided to enlighten him.

"You were unconscious for a while."

Sayid shook his head, "I will be fine. It is just a headache, and Jack has enough to worry about without me adding to the pressure."

"Yeah Sawyer."

Sawyer growled under his breath at Kate's interruption. There had been no need for her to speak, and there was certainly no need for the smugness now plastered over her face.

He looked around the camp, it had calmed down quite a bit and the taste of fear had gone from the air. Most of the castaways had stopped moving and this made Locke stand out even more. He smiled at Sawyer who kept his face as still as possible, watching Locke's smile drop. He felt slightly guilty at it but he didn't feel the need to get close to Locke. Or any of the survivors really.

"Jack will be here soon." Locke didn't look happy at Kate's statement and Sawyer found himself remembering Jack's return to camp, repeatedly asking if it was Locke who had attacked him. He hadn't noticed how big the rift between them had become. Sawyer smirked to himself, there would be someway he could use that to his advantage, he would just have to wait until the right moment.

With a smile at Kate and a seething glance towards Locke, Jack arrived. "Right, we need to move quickly." He began to walk away, trekking into the jungle with Kate following straight behind, Sayid going a short way after them and Locke tagging along at the end.

Sawyer decided to keep pace with him, waiting a minute before speaking, "you seem to be in the Doc's bad books then."

Locke shook his head slightly, "I always am."

"And why's that then?"

"I convinced Jack to be leader," Locke sped up, causing Sawyer to clasp a hand across his ribs at the quickened pace. He was surprised, he'd never heard of it.

"You convinced him to…"

"Yep."

"How did you manage to do that then?"

"Told him that people were scared, needed guidance, someone to organize them. Jack decided to take on the role and now he blames me for it."

He stopped walking; looking at Sawyer's chest and Sawyer instantly removed his arm, aware that Locke was probably pausing to let him rest. He wasn't going to let himself become a charity case. It wasn't that he wanted to prove himself as a strong man; it was that he didn't want to be indebted to anyone. It was easier to struggle to care for yourself and deal with the consequences than to let people care for you only to find that they wanted something in return days, even years down the line. It was the reason he'd preferred to con alone, no matter how much harder it was to pull off and it was the reason that he now forced himself to keep his arms at his side as he continued to trudge through the jungle.

"I think that's the reason. Maybe he just has a problem with me," Locke chuckled and Sawyer recognised something. It was the same one that he used when Kate was fawning over Jack. It was the one that he used when he tried to mask his insecurities. Locke didn't seem to notice that Sawyer had figured it out so he decided not to tell him, there was no reason to upset him.

He almost wanted to hit himself though, when ten seconds later he was trying to work out how to use that flaw against him.

"John," Locke moved to the front of the group as Jack called him and Sawyer followed, standing next to Sayid who kept blinking, as though his eyes were finding it hard to focus.

"I lost the trail; we need you to take over."

"Yeah, you know, the reason you're actually here." Sawyer noticed the bite in Jack's tone even more than usual.

Locke looked down at the ground, searching a short way ahead as everyone else sat down, pulling out water bottles to drink from. Sayid being silent, Sawyer could hear snatches of Jack and Kate's conversation.

"We should have never let him come…" Sawyer felt his stomach clench in anger before he heard Kate's reply.

"…knows how to track…" Oh, they weren't talking about him. It felt strange; suddenly he wasn't Jack's nemesis anymore. He'd have to change that or he'd be risking his cherished position as most hated.

"…useless…"

Locke called over to them that he had picked up the trail and they followed him, Kate and Jack still deep in conversation. After thirty minutes Sawyer looked back to see that Sayid had stopped, rubbing his temple again. Sawyer whistled, getting the attention of Jack.

"Sayid, come on, we only just rested."

Sayid didn't move but stumbled slightly, still clutching at his head.

"Sayid! I said now!"

Sawyer wasn't sure why Jack had become so angry with Sayid when his gripe was with Locke and he was almost about to ask when he heard Sayid speaking.

"My head really hurts."

"Sayid!" Jack charged towards him, fury plastered on his face, "Sayid!"

Suddenly Sayid's hand fell away from his head as he collapsed in a heap on the floor, unconscious. Everyone froze until Jack's voice, the anger replaced by fear, was heard again.

"Sayid?"


	7. Chapter 7

Locke watched as Jack crouched down next to Sayid, checking for a pulse. He looked up at them and nodded, some of the fear leaving his eyes; "he's breathing, he's only unconscious. Going to be fine."

Locke's mind flashed back to when he had attacked Sayid; to the rabid desire to stay on the island, to retain the use of his legs and to attain the bigger purpose that he had been searching for since he had learned that his parents hadn't wanted to keep him. But all that had achieved was Boone's death and a button that appeared to be growing more and more pathetic than with each one hundred and eight minute iteration.

"He was just walking around…" Sawyer looked worried and Locke wondered why, Sawyer's animosity towards Sayid was well known.

"He's got a concussion. He'll need to go back to camp, stay awake and be watched over. I'll check over him once I've got Aaron back."

"You're not going back with him?"

"No Locke; I need to get Aaron back. Sawyer can take him back."

"Why do I have to do it?"

"Locke can track." Locke picked up on the regret in Jack's voice in the statement and wondered if he was imagining it; perhaps Jack didn't regard him the way that Locke thought that he did. There was a small chance that he had become so accustomed to being taken advantage of, being abandoned, being ridiculed that he now expected it. He decided that he would try to change that somehow, try to connect with the survivors again, especially Jack.

"Sawyer!" Jack's voice was rising and Sawyer crouched down next to Sayid's body, picking him up. Jack appeared to calm down once being obeyed and nodded at Sawyer, "you think you can make it all the way back?"

"Yeah."

Locke looked up at the sky, "it isn't going to rain anytime soon. You should be able to just follow the footprints back to camp." He waited for Sawyer's reaction, hoping that it would be positive. He had enjoyed talking to him before Sayid had collapsed, although, if he admitted the truth to himself, he would have enjoyed talking to anyone. He had not been sure how Sawyer had viewed the conversation however.

"Thanks." It was a gruff reply and it sounded forced but Sawyer left it at that, turning around and heading back in the direction of the camp.

Locke walked to the front of the group again, continuing to track, biting down on the sides of his mouth in an attempt to stop the smile breaking out across his face from Sawyer's answer.

"It isn't a good thing."

"What?" He stopped, turning around to see Jack looking annoyed.

"It isn't a good thing that Sayid is hurt."

"I never said that it was."

"Really? Because in my opinion people only smile when they are happy."

He wondered whether he should admit the truth to Jack; tell him that he was actually smiling because somebody had been kind to him for the first time since Boone's death. Thinking about Boone however made the smile fall instantly and he remembered his pledge to himself that he was going to try and associate more with Jack, fix the rift that was steadily growing between them.

"I'm sorry Jack. I was thinking about something else that was making me smile but it was very inappropriate of me, given the circumstances. Shall we continue tracking?"

Some of Jack's annoyance had fallen, replaced with a mixture of confusion and smugness. "Yeah."

Locke continued going along the track, wondering if he had begun to succeed in his plan when he held up a hand to signal Jack and Kate to stop. He moved back to Jack, walking quietly so as to not disturb the leaves that littered the floor.

"I just saw a shadow, human shaped, walking down that way," he pointed and when Kate opened her mouth to speak he put a finger up against his lips to tell her not to, "we should be able to track her, but she might be leading us into a trap." He looked pointedly at Jack, "you have to tell us what to do."

Jack barely seemed to think about it, "we follow her."

Sawyer made his way onto the beach, resisting the urge to drop the still unconscious Sayid the moment he arrived. He was tired and the journeys had taken their toll on his chest and stomach muscles, making them ache even further. A few people rushed over to him, obviously expecting Aaron and the rest of the group, their faces falling when they saw Sayid.

Sawyer trudged over to near a fire, lying Sayid down before sitting down himself, almost collapsing. He heard someone come over to him and turned to see Eko crouch down next to Sayid.

"Is he okay?"

"He'll be fine. He's just unconscious. Jack said to watch him and keep him awake until he gets back."

"He is not coming back now?"

"No," Sawyer couldn't keep the aggravation out of his voice, "the merry hunters are still out looking for babies."

Eko chuckled lowly, "do not feel bad James. You have been useful by bringing him back."

Sawyer was about to tell him that it was bad enough having one person on the island calling him by his birth name, let alone two but before he could say anything, he saw Sayid stirring.


	8. Chapter 8

Sawyer stared down at Sayid; wondering for a moment if he should leave before he woke up so that he wouldn't be placed in the awkward situation of appearing that he cared. The fact that he did care at least a bit wasn't the point, it still made him weaker.

"Shannon?"

"Nah, she ain't here anymore."

Sayid's eyes blinked open, staring at Sawyer with confusion before realising what he had said. "Of course she is not." He looked around, trying to sit up, "what am I doing on the beach?"

Sawyer tried to chuckle, aware that it sounded hollow, thinking about Sayid expecting Shannon to be by his side. "You collapsed. Got concussion."

"But what am I doing on the beach?"

Sawyer sighed, overly-pronouncing his words, "you collapsed. Got…"

"I heard you the first time you said so. But that still begs the question as to why I am on the beach rather than retrieving Aaron."

"You got kicked out of the club."

"Oh." His face fell.

"You got me kicked out to. And I was itching for revenge."

"I am sorry."

"You should be. I had to carry you all the damn way back and now I gotta watch you till Jack gets back."

"You do not have to watch me! You do not have to do anything for me." Sawyer was surprised by the snarl in his voice.

"That's gratitude for you. I was told to watch you, so I'm watching you. Why you want to get Aaron anyway."

"Revenge. Revenge for Shannon." Sayid stopped talking and Sawyer didn't want to push him, remaining in silence for a couple of minutes until Sayid began to stand up.

"Ya'll not allowed to do that." He stayed sitting on the sand as he watched Sayid stand, almost immediately clutching his forehead and sitting down again, doubling over.

Kate trod through the jungle behind Jack and Locke, feeling annoyed that she had been relegated to the back of the group. What made it worse was that they had been in complete silence for over twenty minutes and that was what she hated most. It gave her too much time to think about her past.

"Ssshh," she stepped forward, ready to inform Locke that she didn't mean to keep making noise by tripping over the branches but Jack held out a hand to stop her.

"What's wrong?"

"Woman disappeared."

Kate felt her stomach clench when she heard a sharp noise behind her, followed by a thick accent. "Who are you and why are you following me?"

"Rousseau?" Kate turned around to have the gun raised higher in the air, pointed at her head.

"Why are you following me?"

Kate saw Locke and Jack turn around as well, Locke obviously the more fearful of the two of them. Jack swallowed hard, starting to speak, "we were trying to find Claire's baby. Do you remember Claire's baby?"

"Jack…"

"John, be quiet! Do you remember her baby?"

Rousseau's gun changed aim to point at Jack, "I am not insane. I remember."

"I didn't mean to suggest that. We don't mean you any harm."

"_They_ took him, just like they took Alex. If you let us go we may be able to find him for you." Despite Locke speaking, the gun remained held towards Jack.

Rousseau shook her head, "you can not find Alex. And if they have taken this baby then you will never see it again."

"You gave up hope?"

Kate was about to tell Locke to stop talking to her, to try and fight her to remove the gun before they all died before she was interrupted. "I have not given up hope that I will find her, but I am aware that it is almost certainly a lost cause. Do you honestly think that you will get this child back?"

"No," Kate felt her eyes widen at Locke's admission, beginning to wonder if Jack had been right about not bringing him along. "The Others are smarter than us, faster than us, they are able to walk without leaving tracks and they are excellent fighters. If they don't want to give Aaron back then they will not give Aaron back, but the least we can do is try."

Rousseau smiled, lowering the gun, "you still have a lot of faith."

"I do."

She began to leave, disappearing through the jungle, "I would hate to be there when you lose that faith."


	9. Chapter 9

"It's been two hours John," Locke ignored the objections, continuing to tread through the undergrowth; picking his pace up even though his legs were starting to ache. "We need a break."

"I don't need one." He knew that he was being idiotic, he did need a break, or at least to get a drink of water but he didn't want to appear weak. Rousseau had shown him up, appearing and attacking his faith before disappearing as usual. She hadn't had the right to; he found it hard enough to get people in the camp to respect him without this latest setback, "I don't care if they don't like me, it doesn't matter, there's something more important than them."

"What?"

"I said I don't need a break."

"No, you mumbled something else," Locke froze, he knew that he had said his mantra in his head, he usually did, it was something his therapist had taught him to do so that he didn't get depressed with being an outsider but he hadn't meant to say it aloud.

"I don't think I did."

Kate shrugged, obviously not interested anymore.

"We're taking a break now," Jack sat down and Kate followed suit. For a moment Locke considered continuing without them, letting them catch up but he didn't, sitting down as well, trying to ignore the pain that was starting to spread at the base of his spine. He still wasn't used to walking, too much work made it hurt like hell.

"I'm going to go and get some fruit," Kate raised her eyes to the trees above them, there were banana's a couple of meters away. Jack nodded his approval and she scooted off.

"We should head back to camp…"

"No."

"Chances are we're not going to find Aaron right now, Rousseau said…"

"No." Locke was surprised that he was arguing with Jack, something that he rarely had the courage to do but it was worth it. He needed to keep looking for Aaron, even if he didn't know why.

"Sayid needs medical attention."

Locke bit back a laugh, not managing to hide it completely, "if you cared about Sayid you'd have gone back with him when Sawyer did."

"You know what John? Maybe you think that there's something more important than me but I'm the leader around here and everybody knows it. We're taking this break and we are going back to camp."

Sawyer rubbed at his temple, he was starting to get a headache. When Sayid woke up he had been inundated with Charlie whining at him and Claire crying to him, asking why he could have left Aaron with the Others and come back. It had taken all of his strength not to say that he had tried to stay behind. He looked across the beach, seeing Charlie sit down next to Claire, handing her a bottle of water and wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

"Hey dude, Sayid's falling asleep again."

Sawyer sighed, hearing Hurley behind him, "son of a bitch," he stood up, walking a few steps to Sayid who was lying on his side, his arms cradled underneath his head. "Get up."

"I'm tired."

"Jack said that you had to stay awake and if you die I ain't taking the blame so get up."

"Jack said this over three hours ago and if you will not let me go back into the jungle to help them then you can at least let me sleep."

Sawyer rolled his eyes, smiling, as much as he hated what Sayid had put him through it was nice knowing that there was someone else on the island willing to challenge authority. "You want me to get you something to eat again?"

"I am not hungry. I have had concussion before and I know that I am safeto sleep now."

"Not until Jack says. I'm sure he's nearly back anyway. Now get up."

Sayid sighed, sitting up, "happy now?"

"Fucking ecstatic. Now can I get some peace yet?"

"You do not have to watch me."

"You're not going to sleep."

"Then get someone else to watch me."

"I'm the only one who can beat you up if you lie down again."

Sayid nodded understandably, "I suppose that you could."

Sawyer left him, sitting down and watching Charlie and Claire again, wishing that Jack would get back soon before Sayid drove him insane.


End file.
